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Ensemble's Final Goodbye

Bruce Shelley writes one last blog entry and says 'goodbye and thanks.'

Ensemble Studios' head Bruce Shelley has contributed one final entry to the company's blog, which says "goodbye and thanks" as the doors finally close at the Halo Wars developers HQ. He notes that although the studio will be shut down, the official Halo Wars site will remain alive and will serve as a news source for the game.

We are working our way through the final week with mixed emotions. We have a lot to be proud of and new opportunities are beckoning, but it is also sad to see this particular great adventure coming to an end. Boxes are piled in the hallways for trash; people are giving away games and other stuff they don't want anymore; computers are being wiped; and our corporate IDs are being turned in. Although we will be keeping in touch through some alumni initiatives, many of us may not cross paths again.

There are at least two new studios being formed by ES employees and I expect both to do very well. There were a lot of outstanding game developers here and it will be interesting to see how and what they do, both individually and as new groups, in the years ahead.

It's always sad to see a studio which has survived for so long come to an end, but Shelley does mention that at least two new studios are being formed by ex-Ensemble employees.